Tauranga by-election 1993
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The Tauranga by-election was a by-election in the New Zealand electorate of Tauranga, a city in New Zealand's North Island. It took place on 17 April 1993, and was precipitated by the resignation from parliament of sitting MP Winston Peters. Peters, who had been increasingly at odds with his National Party colleagues, had resigned both from his party and from Parliament. He contested the seat as an independent.
None of the major parties contested this election, realising that Peters was highly popular in his electorate. The National Party did not propose a candidate to replace Peters. As expected, Peters won a massive majority, receiving just over ninety percent of the vote. It is debated exactly what his margin of victory might have been if the election had been fully contested, but it was never really believed that Peters would lose. The distant runner-up in the election was a member of the McGillicuddy Serious Party, a joke party.
Candidate | Party | Votes | Percentage |
Winston Peters | (independent) | 11,458 | 90.71% |
G M Pittams | McGillicuddy Serious Party | 271 | 2.15% |
Peter Wakeman | (independent) | 190 | 1.50% |
G J Barham | HFA | 185 | 1.46% |
P R Watson | SM | 184 | 1.46% |
I M Baikie | (independent) | 109 | 0.86% |
L Lee | Natural Law Party | 101 | 0.80% |
A G Bedford | HEMP | 55 | 0.44% |
R S Tengblad | Blokes' Liberation Front | 29 | 0.23% |
R A Campbell | Aotearoa Partnership | 25 | 0.20% |
Victor Bryer | Christ's Ambassadors Union | 24 | 0.01% |